For the last 15 years, Frank DelCore has been a mainstay on the Hillsborough Township Committee.
He has been voted to serve the community by his fellow Hillsborough peers for five consecutive three-year terms.
DelCore’s fifth term as a Hillsborough Township committeeman will be his last.
DelCore announced on March 1 through a joint press release with Hillsborough Republican Chairman Ken Scherer that he plans on stepping down and will not run for re-election when his recent term comes to an end later this year.
“It has been one of the honors of my lifetime to represent Hillsborough for the last decade and a half. In particular, the privilege of serving as Hillsborough’s mayor five times is one of my proudest achievements,” DelCore said in the statement.
DelCore, his wife Renee, and their two daughters Rebecca and Kristin have been a part of the Hillsborough community since 2001.
He currently holds the position of chief operating officer of the law firm Haley Guiliano, LLP, an intellectual property firm based in New York City.
Scherer, who is a former mayor of Hillsborough and Somerset County Freeholder, thanked DelCore for his 15 years of service to the Hillsborough community.
“Hillsborough Township has been very fortunate to have Frank DelCore represent the residents of Hillsborough for the past 15 years,” Scherer said in the statement. “Frank has been an exemplary public servant that has always put the best interest of Hillsborough and its residents first.”
As mentioned in the press release, DelCore’s mission when he first ran for office in 2007 was to be a “fiscal watchdog” for Hillsborough. He wanted to help ensure that the township’s taxpayer dollars were spent efficiently and use his financial background to create a budget to help the community grow into the future.
A few of the accomplishments DelCore is most proud of during time on the board are the completion of the Route 2016 bypass, acquiring the General Service Administration Depot and helping develop Mountain View Park, according to the statement.
“I have loved every minute of my time in office,” DelCore said in the statement. “Although I will miss representing our town, I know it is the right time to allow the next generation of leaders to continue the work my wonderful colleagues and I have started.”
DelCore’s announcement of his impending departure comes on the heels of his controversial comments that were caught on video during the Township Committee’s reorganization meeting earlier this year on Jan. 5.
DelCore could be heard saying under his breath “Oh Jesus, same thing, (expletive) masks” after Our Revolution Hillsborough President Didier Jimenez asked for the board to consider implementing a mask mandate because of the Omicron variant and the rise in COVID-19 cases during that time.
His comments were picked up when Hillsborough resident Tiffany Fowler was stepping up to the microphone during the public forum to speak about her own concerns revolving around COVID-19.
At the following committee meeting on Jan. 11, DelCore did condone his comments, saying that he did mutter some “inarticulate language” to himself surrounding his frustrations on the mask mandate matter.
DelCore did add in his speech that his comments did not stop either Jimenez or Fowler from stating their respective cases to the board and they received no “push back” from him or the rest of the committee members.
“If this has caused any undue concern to the board or the township, I certainly apologize for that, but I don’t want to let it be mistaken for somehow anything other than what I just stated,” DelCore said.